I'm new to the site and to the scanner world. Need suggestions/help. I live in ak

[rogerx]

If I relocate or move again, I'll be sure to seek a safe community not employing (military grade) encryption for their 911 or other public safety services.

But if you're smoking dope, you sure as heck are going to want encryption when you get caught, as you don't want everybody else to know your smoking dope!

 

[kikito]

I'm new to the site and to the scanner world. Need suggestions/help. I live i...

Oh look, more agencies using encryption sparingly for sensitive and SWAT operations but regular traffic dispatch in the clear. The opposite of Alaska where they encrypt the dispatch of traffic stops and car accidents but leave most of the sensitive operations in the open. You just gotta scratch your head.....

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/breaking-news/index.ssf/2013/02/warren_county_radios_to_get_ne.html

 

[rogerx]

Eh, AK-47 with unknown location. One of my dreads, but if us civilians don't hear about it, it'll hopefully keep realty prices high and the public with a false perception of security.

I don't mind if SWAT or Spec Ops are encrypted. Just as long as I have an idea if something isn't contained by the locals, and we end up having a guy run through the nieghborhood with a gun or other domestic activity, etc. Usually, when SWAT is on scene, the situation is already well contained and isn't going to flow over into my yard or other area I'm going to be. If you're not aware of something happening as a civilian, you're very likely a victim. But if you're retired police, etc, you have a few seconds to at least perk-up. (This also reminds me of the bank robbery in California with the automatic weapons, etc, and virtually unstoppable by police.)

... not the brightest bucket of apples up here in Alaska. I told somebody, "whomever made the decision to encrypt normal traffic should be fired." And I've never suggested firing anybody for a decade or more until now. But when somebody just does something really dumb like this, one just has to say something. Especially when lives are at stake, and the next thing to an officer in a remote area or late at night, is your nearest ham or sleepy security/radio listener.

Very likely, whomever made the decision never worked a day within the civilian sector, except for maybe prior military. Thinking, civilians have no right to hear or be aware of what's going on within their neighborhood, or they're all dope smokers. Paranoia at it's finest.

My last note on this, listening to unencrypted traffic is a really good stone-stepper for those interested. This also reminds me of the scenario of banning handguns.

 

[rogerx]

I should also mention, I just heard Uniden has no plans to manufacturer any more scanners.

I would figure, this anonymous statement, sort of states until common traffic is no longer encrypted. Again, it's speculative if they ever manufacturer scanners again. I'd also have to figure, there'd have to be a majority of unencrypted traffic for the business to be profitable again. (I wonder how much money is loss and how many businesses are hurt, and I know it's quite a bit.)

Also, the article kikito provided a URL to, contained basically the basic everyday excuses for encryption. Personally, I've never seen Press rushing to a scene unless it were a major incident, then they're already dealing with crowd control. I'd sure hate to be the Police Officer in charge of press releases with this issue -- I'm not a very good liar.

 

[kikito]

I'd sure hate to be the Police Officer in charge of press releases with this issue -- I'm not a very good liar.

Yeah, wait until they *might* have to have a full time position or two just to keep up with all the requests for incident information and Freedom of Info Act (FOIA) requests from the press and citizens alike. Of course, I suspect just like its already happening, the FOIA will get tighter and tighter as far as to who and what gets released on the pretext of national security, if you know what I mean....

But I suppose if Congress gets bypassed more and more often for everything and the biggest and most controversial bills and laws get passed behind closed doors at night on Holiday weekends, the rest of the stuff like this is 'small potatoes', right? LOL but not really....

 

[rogerx]

Yup. Ditto. But I'm not really in the mood for playing around. I use (or utilized) the scanner as a tool, and a tool only. Like many others.

Since we no longer have this tool, for keeping our eyes open, we can only sit and pray like the many Jewish whom were subject to Hitler's will. (I clarify to prevent frequent misinterpretation, I'm equating Hitler with criminals or criminal activity.) Obviously, those using encryption do not need any help from it's citizens, nor are those citizens of much value if trouble spills-over into their wake. :-/

Many will suffer without this realtime information, all because they were too lazy to create a suitable law and to adequately enforce it, or enforce laws already on the books. And, a computer is probably one of the easiest things to control!

 

[kikito]

I'm new to the site and to the scanner world. Need suggestions/help. I live i...

And the "militarization" of civilian law enforcement continues....

http://www.ktva.com/home/outbound-x...-State-Troopers--199461911.html?m=y&smobile=y

 

[rogerx]

Thanks for posting.

Living in Alaska for the past five or so years, from my experience, I don't think the previous Alaska Territorial Government ever ceased to exist since it was setup by the US prior to becoming a State in 1959. The fear of Alaska becoming a non-republican State is also noted within the Alaska Wikipedia page. In other words, things are really politically wacky here versus other States with a fear of liability with the laws they pass.

But on the flip, the US government seems to be currently mocking the overly zealous AST posture on the use of encryption. Hearing more encryption from Fairbanks PD recently as well. Funny how the truth eventually is always heard, and those that are only looking out for themselves becomes evident!

Like I said, should be open system, until a murder occurs or the use is justified. Keep the civilians informed, or with the ability to protect themselves.

Use of encryption is similar to the use of force. Go out knocking everybody up with a baton or unjustified force, you're bound to fail.

We're suppose to have people with 4+ years of college on criminology/law including experience working within this civilian profession, not too mention the retirees. But where are they on this issue?

A dictatorship, or one that is dependent on a dictatorship, would love what's going on these days.

 

[blue5011]

But on the flip, the US government seems to be currently mocking the overly zealous AST posture on the use of encryption. Hearing more encryption from Fairbanks PD recently as well. Funny how the truth eventually is always heard, and those that are only looking out for themselves becomes evident!

I wouldn't put too much into this encryption stuff. First, encrytion "costs" more to implement. As more agencies get involved, the more the "keys" and radios need to be updated. Secondly, the more we complicate things, the easier it is for someone to just say the heck with it and use a clear channel. Third, more and more, police are using a cellphone.

A day does not go by that I don't see a cop w/ a effing phone to the head. At least CDL holders are required to use a hands-free device, what about these coppers yapping to who knows who?

Lastly, maybe it is time to bring a sort of "County Sheriff" to the AST. I am talking someone **elected** and DIRECTLY responsible to the PEOPLE. Anytime an agency thinks they need a "military assault" vehicle, it just raises questions for me. Most hostage situations can be defused by TIME instead of FORCE.

 

[rogerx]

Trained in health and safety, including being responsible for tax payers monies, (etc) it just drives me nuts. Not too also to mention, the lack of insight by others on this specific issue.

Ditto concerning cell phones; including the costs of encryption and false sense of security.

I also too speculate, people are trying to get AST out of the civilian policing. Most States restrict State policing to the highways, while utilizing more localized policing for civilians to provide that touchy feel-ly feeling when needed. ;-)

You are so correct, Police or those in power, earn more respect when using lesser force to defuse a situation rather than just shooting up the neighborhood. Granted, there's more stress involved. (ie. The Andy Griffith Show ;-)

However, within Fairbanks/North Pole, nobody wants an FNSB Sheriff. And from viewing how the FNSB wants to outlaw wood stoves for residents living within -60F temps, they seem too irrational to be able to wield such power. But, as I further think, this could be due to the distance AST keeps itself from the populace, leaving the FNSB without proper advice as it doesn't have a Sheriff's department to forewarn them of their imperfections. (ie. When I worked, people would mention it's probably not wise to do something, and then further explain if it wasn't understood.)

I'm not too worried, about the State becoming a dictatorship, even though this is basically what would transpire just prior, I'm more worried about people playing games without the fear of being held liable for the damage that they do. I, myself, realize I cannot play games unless the stakes are high enough. Even then, if I do play games, I also realize I will likely loose everything I have gained because I played games. Basic fear of God principle, as such, honesty is a best policy.

You can't put a price on an injury or loss of life, even though the Courts try. A few posts here, might well be worth the risk. ;-)

I'm retired now and stating my brief observations. I assume everybody else have a job, and signed to a non-disclosure agreement.

 

[blue5011]

However, within Fairbanks/North Pole, nobody wants an FNSB Sheriff.QUOTE]

I am well aware of the fact no one wants a "FNSB Sheriff", but you can't tell me that the AST is completely answering to the public... At least w' an "FNSB Sheriff" you could vote him out...

I also see the problem w/ the wood boilers near the school. Well if they are a problem today, surely they were a problem two-three years ago. Why did it take so long for some whiner to do officially complain?

 

[rogerx]

Ditto, I know this. But I think it's very likely many people smoke dope around here, making themselves parnoid to think beyond that scope. Since dope is pretty prominent, I could almost conclude people are just being wacky and paranoid at most times. It's the only red flag aside from the horrid air quality during December thru March. Nothing else seems out of place beside this, and oh, the horrible real estate biz. ;-)

Ah, here's another thought, people tend not to be too privy about local patrols from what I can also speculate. Having a local police force or sheriff, might mean that their dope plants might get yanked. (Currently, the majority of North Pole is patrolled by AST if they're every around, while North Pole City does have their own little patrol as we previously discussed.)

My thought, I wouldn't mind girl sheriffs who enjoy using a baton patrolling my streets.

[Off Topic] Shrugs. I'm not too sure why, I wasn't watching the scenario unfold so I can't comment on that. The funny thing is; hearsay has it, they installed the wood burner recently. Now if it were my house, my house didn't have much any heating system designed for it, except a wood stove. This alone would justify my needs for a wood stove. They could have other issues as well . BTW: The issue just isn't wood smoke, it's everything; including home oil heating and mostly vehicle pollution. If I'm not mistaken, you can see the ice smog on the roads during Winter, while the residential areas will be free of the smog. People easily see wood smoke and don't see oil heating monoxides, as such they easily conclude. Also, extremely minimal stand-off distances from each houses heating device within this area. People don't burn wood within the large southwestern cities of the US, and yet you look at those skylines and they're also a deep brown. If I'm also not mistaken, if you go up into the Cuyamaca Mountains over looking San Diego, I think you can actually see the blue hazy bubble (green house) effect! Really amazing.

Anyways, this dopey peddly stuff and really doesn't bother me. Can easily be cleaned-up with a quick phone call.

 

[blue5011]

(Currently, the majority of North Pole is patrolled by AST if they're every around, while North Pole City does have their own little patrol as we previously discussed.)

I lived in NP awhile back, just off Badger Rd. NP seemed to want to be "big league", have their own police, sales tax, etc. Doesn't the NP/ FPD police use the same radio system as the AST?

Here we have the MN ARMER 800mhz system that EVERY police/ fire/ ems agency is on. It seems to work well and is easily monitored.

 

[rogerx]

Ditto Blue concering your comment, "800mhz system that EVERY police/ fire/ ems agency is on. It seems to work well and is easily monitored."

The past radio system was more than adequate, and it just needed a quick tweek to make communication compatible across agencies. But when those in power get a new toy, they sometimes forget what it's like to be a citizen. Police should be extremely well trained within this theology, but for some reason they are being oblivoous to feeling what it's like to be near an incident, working as a private security guard without a clue whether or not an armed guy is going to go running through their property. Or, they've never worked the civilian sector. The past system also made it possible for retirees to be in the know as well.

With civilians in the know, it also likely makes it more difficult for the abuse of power to occur.

Usually when in the government, you make small changes to the system avoiding making mistakes that could have a system wide effect. Very similar with any job really.

AST is responsible for everything outside of Fairbanks; including North Pole, except for inner North Pole city limits which has it's own little police department. The outskirts of North Pole, construed as "North Pole" encompasses the smaller North Pole City limits and covers a larger area. (I'm missing a regional designation here to define the difference between "North Pole" and "North Pole City/City of North Pole".)

Everything currently is separate of the AST radio frequencies and everything is on ALMR. However, you can also hear the politics concerning trying to also encrypt those other non-police frequencies such as fire. God help me, if my 911 call is dropped because the officer gets lost. (And, working within the field, getting lost happens quite frequently, as it's dependent on the callers directions and the responding's knowledge of the area.)

In addition, many other rural areas within other States depend on the 911 system to be open. But, people that do not understand this, are usually those trying to cover-up their imperfections, fallacies or family problems with addictions to drugs and alcohol afraid of being embarassed. Most people listening could care less of the imperfections, and only intention is safety and health, or the preservation of the property they reside on. There are many good people within law enforcement who's main goal is for a peaceful resolve, rather than trying to trounce others' rights.

 

[kikito]

I'm new to the site and to the scanner world. Need suggestions/help. I live i...

And for those that wonder what's the big deal and outcry about the militarization of law enforcement, the obfuscation of all public safety communications, etc. THIS IS a perfect example of WHY:

http://clashdaily.com/2013/03/pro-g...e-pics-of-their-kids-with-guns/#ixzz2OHf4tpLV

Of course in Alaska they'll have to raid more than half the homes in the state which is why gun control would be handy for the government to implement....

Which brings up yet another point about the so-called social media and it's proliferation. They tried to do something similar to the infamous Schaeffer Cox here in Fairbanks when he also posted pictures in Facebook with his kids and guns. Social media is a beautiful information mining tool, especially for the government.

Anyway, supposedly reported by the touchy-feely, scared of guns citizens, they tried to also take away his kids. When that failed, now we know the route they went to get him and the rest is history. Regardless of what anybody knows about him or even if you don't like him, what happened there is a scary thing and it shows what's in store for everyone else at the rate we're going with the current administration and the general attitude in government and politicians. They have forgotten who are they supposed to serve, protect and work for.....

 

[rogerx]

HD Radio - Wikipedia
HD Radio - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Describes some controversies with the digitization of the analogue system, albeit, many of us already knew of the problems. But then again, I lived in Cleveland where digitization initially began during the 1990's, so maybe only a few of us knew of the problems. The suburbs of Cleveland apeared to avoid it.

kikito: My Dad and Grandfather always had .22 caliber rifles and guns around and let us shoot them all the time when we were young, as long as they supervised us. It's a great way to learn discipline. Matter of a fact, this is probably one reason I'm such a threat to every criminal out there these days. Shrugs. (Criminals hate self discipline and the fact they can't exploit a certain crowd.)

But I should add, they never went around taking photos of us doing so. Always treated the practice with a seriousnous. In other words, boasting probably isn't a good thing. "Girls just wanna have guns", seems like a play on words. They are tools and not toys to play with.

Registered to libertyalliance.com, to somebody in AZ. Sarah?

(Maybe as I think about it, maybe our parents just never trusted us with guns to take photos and boast about it. ie; Target shooting was too infrequent.)

 

[kikito]

rogerx,

I guess it all depends with what intentions people take photos of themselves and their kids and guns. The way I see it, it's all about preserving and cherish good times in life. Don't see what's wrong with taking a photo with your kid's first gun or first hunt. Or first nice big moose taken down. Or subsequent guns and hunts. It's something I never looked at in a negative way or dangerous or anything like that.

I can see inner city kids without proper supervision or having not been taught proper etiquette around guns doing stupid stuff with guns and/or posting photos in a "gansta" wanna-be pose with guns in Facebook and the like but that's just some other kind of special stupid....

 

[kikito]

In other news:

The US Government Can't Break iMessage's Encryption -- AppAdvice


So basically, it's OK for the government to continue to grow more secretive, behind closed doors, and hiding everything they do behind encryption and laws. BUT the citizens better be living a "transparent life" that they can snoop on when they want to, with or without justification or probable cause....

I know this is nothing new, it's just at the increasingly alarming rate stuff like this keeps happening. Meanwhile, every time when everybody and the media is distracted by a so-called social issue like abortion or same-sex marriage, this administration keeps quietly signing new bills and laws that keep shrinking our privacy and freedom or just stupid like the Monsanto Protection Act and the NDAA.....

 

[rogerx]

I completely agree.

 

[kikito]

Alaska is not what it used to be 20 or more years ago when I moved here. Or who knows how long it's been like it is now but faith and hope in our fellow humans kept us blinded....:twisted:

State Integrity Investigation

The 2012 State Integrity Investigation graded state ethics laws according to an "Integrity Index." The index was created by researching 330 "Integrity Indicators" across 14 categories of state government. The report assigned grades based on what laws are on the books, and whether or not they were effectively enforced. The report was a project of The Center for Public Integrity, Global Integrity, and Public Radio International.[16]

Alaska received an overall grade of D+, or 68%. It ranked 27 out of the 50 states.[17]

Category Grade
Public Access to Information F
Political Financing C+
Executive Accountability C-
Legislative Accountability C-
Judicial Accountability C+
State Budget Processes F
State Civil Service Management D-
Procurement C
Internal Auditing C+
Lobbying Disclosure C
State Pension Fund Management F
Ethics Enforcement Agencies C-
State Insurance Commissions C-
Redistricting F


Read more: Evaluation of Alaska state website - Sunshine Review